```

[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 244 (Thursday, December 19, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 103662-103663]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-30242]

=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

41 CFR Part 105-70

[FPMR Case 2025-01; Docket No. GSA-FPMR-2025-0021; Sequence No. 1]
RIN 3090-AK89

Civil Monetary Penalties Inflation Adjustment

AGENCY: The Office of the General Counsel, General Services 
Administration.

ACTION: Final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 
Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended by the Debt Collection Improvement 
Act of 1996, and further amended by the Federal Civil Penalties 
Inflation Adjustment Act Improvement Act of 2015, this final rule 
applies the inflation adjustments for GSA's civil monetary penalties.

DATES: Effective 30 days after the date of publication.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Aaron Pound, Assistant General 
Counsel, General Law Division (LG), General Services Administration, 
1800 F Street NW, Washington DC 20405. Telephone Number 202-501-1460.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. The Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996

    To maintain the remedial impact of civil monetary penalties (CMPs) 
and to promote compliance with the law, the Federal Civil Penalties 
Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-410) was amended by the 
Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 (Pub. L. 104-134) and the 
Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvement Act of 
2015 (Sec. 701 of Pub. L. 114-74) to require Federal agencies to 
regularly adjust certain CMPs for inflation. As amended, the law 
requires each agency to make an initial inflationary adjustment for all 
applicable CMPs, and to make further adjustments at least once every 
year thereafter for these penalty amounts. The Debt Collection 
Improvement Act of 1996 further stipulates that any resulting increases 
in a CMP due to the calculated inflation adjustments shall apply only 
to violations which occur after the date the increase takes effect 30 
days after the date of publication in the Federal Register. Pursuant to 
the 2015 Act, agencies are required to adjust the level of the CMP with 
an initial ``fix``, and make subsequent annual adjustments for 
inflation. Catch up adjustments are based on the percent change between 
the Consumer Price Index for Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the month of 
October for the year of the previous adjustment, and the October 2015 
CPI-U. Annual inflation adjustments will be based on the percent change 
between the October CPI-U preceding the date of adjustment and the 
prior year's October CPI-U.

II. The Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act of 1986

    Sections 6103 and 6104 of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 
1986 (Pub. L. 99-509) set forth the Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act of 
1986 (PFCRA). Specifically, this statute imposes a CMP and an 
assessment against any person who, with knowledge or reason to know, 
makes, submits, or presents a false, fictitious, or fraudulent claim or 
statement to the Government. The General Services Administration's 
regulations, published in the Federal Register (61 FR 246, December 20, 
1996) and codified at 41 CFR part 105-70, currently set forth a CMP of 
up to $13,400 for each false claim or statement made to the agency. 
Based on the penalty amount inflation factor calculation, derived from 
originally dividing the October 2023 CPI by the October 2024 CPI and 
making the CPI-based annual adjustment thereafter, after rounding, we 
are adjusting the maximum penalty amount for this CMP to $13,700 for 
each false claim or statement made to the agency.

III. Subsequent Annual Adjustments

    The 2015 Act also requires agencies to make annual adjustments to 
civil penalty amounts no later than January 15 of each year following 
the initial adjustment described above. For subsequent adjustments made 
in accordance with the 2015 Act, the amount of the adjustment is based 
on the percent increase between the CPI-U for the month of October 
preceding the date of the adjustment and the CPI-U for the October one 
year prior to the October immediately preceding the date of the 
adjustment. If there is no increase, there is no adjustment of civil 
penalties. Therefore, if GSA adjusts penalties in January 2026, the 
adjustment will be calculated based on the percent change between the 
CPI-U for October 2026 (the October immediately preceding the date of 
adjustment) and October 2025 (the October one year prior to October 
2026). GSA will publish the amount of these annual inflation 
adjustments in the Federal Register no later than January 15 of each 
year, starting in 2026.

IV. Public Participation

    The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvement 
Act of 2015 expressly exempts this final rule from the notice and 
comment requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act by directing 
agencies to adjust civil monetary penalties for inflation 
``notwithstanding section 553 of title 5, United States Code'' (Pub. L. 
114-74, 129 Stat. 599; 28 U.S.C. 2461 note). As such, this final rule 
is being issued without prior public notice or opportunity for public 
comment, with an effective date 30 days after the date of publication 
in the Federal Register.

V. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563

    Executive Orders (E.O.s) 12866 and 13563 direct agencies to assess 
all costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives and, if 
regulation is necessary, to select regulatory approaches that maximize 
net benefits (including potential economic, environmental, public 
health and safety effects, distributive impacts, and equity). E.O. 
13563 emphasizes the importance of quantifying both costs and benefits, 
of reducing costs, of harmonizing rules, and of promoting flexibility. 
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has reviewed this final rule 
in accordance with the provisions of E.O. 12866 and has determined that 
it does not meet the criteria for a significant regulatory action and 
thus was not subject to review under Section 6(b) of E.O. 12866. As 
indicated above, the provisions contained in this final rulemaking set 
forth the inflation adjustments in compliance with the Federal Civil 
Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended, for specific 
applicable CMPs. The great majority of individuals, organizations and 
entities addressed through these regulations do not engage in such 
prohibited conduct, and as a result, we believe that any aggregate 
economic impact of these revised regulations will be minimal, affecting 
only those limited few who may engage in prohibited conduct in 
violation of the statute. As such, this final rule and the inflation 
adjustment contained therein should have no effect on Federal or State 
expenditures.

VI. Congressional Review Act

    The agency and the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, 
OMB have determined that this rule is not a major rule under 5 U.S.C. 
804(2). Subtitle E of the Small Business

[[Page 103663]]

Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (codified at 5 U.S.C. 801-
808), also known as the Congressional Review Act or CRA, generally 
provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency promulgating 
the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule, 
to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the 
United States. GSA will submit a report containing this rule and other 
required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of 
Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the United States.

VII. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) requires an agency to prepare 
a regulatory flexibility analysis for rules unless the agency certifies 
that the rule will not have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities. The RFA applies only to rules for 
which an agency is required to first publish a proposed rule. See 5 
U.S.C. 603(a) and 604(a). As explained above, GSA is not required to 
first publish a proposed rule here. Thus, the RFA does not apply to 
this final rule.

VIII. Paperwork Reduction Act

    This final rule imposes no new reporting or recordkeeping 
requirements necessitating clearance by OMB.

List of Subjects in 41 CFR Part 105-70

    Administrative hearing, Claims, Program fraud.

Robin Carnahan,
Administrator.

    Accordingly, 41 CFR part 105-70 is amended as set forth below:

PART 105-70--IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES ACT 
OF 1986

0
1. The authority citation for part 105-70 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  40 U.S.C. 121(c); 31 U.S.C. 3809.

0
2. Amend Sec.  105-70.003 by--
0
a. Removing from paragraph (a)(1)(iv) the amount ``13,400'' and adding 
``13,700'' in its place;
0
b. Removing from paragraph (b)(1)(ii) the amount ``13,400'' and adding 
``13,700'' in its place; and
0
c. Adding paragraphs (f) and (g).
    The additions read as follows:

Sec.  105-70.003  Basis for civil penalties and assessments.

* * * * *
    (f) For violations occurring on or after January 1, 2025, the 
maximum penalty, which may be assessed under paragraphs (a)(1)(iv) or 
(b)(1)(ii) of this section, is the larger of:
    (1) The amount for the previous calendar year, or
    (2) An amount adjusted for inflation, calculated by multiplying the 
amount for the previous calendar year by the percentage by which the 
CPI-U for the month of October preceding the current calendar year 
exceeds the CPI-U for the month of October of the calendar year two 
years prior to the current calendar year, adding that amount to the 
amount for the previous calendar year, and rounding the total to the 
nearest hundred dollar increment.
    (g) Notice of the maximum penalty which may be assessed under 
paragraphs (a)(1)(iv) and (b)(1)(ii) of this section for calendar year 
2026 and thereafter will be published by GSA in the Federal Register on 
an annual basis on or before January 15 of each calendar year.
[FR Doc. 2024-30242 Filed 12-18-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6820-81-P
```